Book Review: The Dead and Buried by Kim Harrington.

Product details:
Publisher: Scholastic.
Hardback, 304 pages.
Release date: January 1st 2013.
Rating: 4 out of 5.
Ages: 12+
Source: Purchased.

A haunted house, a buried mystery, and a very angry ghost make this one unforgettable thriller.

Jade loves the house she's just moved into with her family. She doesn't even mind being the new girl at the high school: It's a fresh start, and there's that one guy with the dreamy blue eyes. . . . But then things begin happening. Strange, otherworldly things. Jade's little brother claims to see a glimmering girl in his room. Jade's jewelry gets moved around, as if by an invisible hand. Kids at school whisper behind her back like they know something she doesn't.

Soon, Jade must face an impossible fact: that her perfect house is haunted. Haunted by a ghost who's seeking not just vengeance, but the truth. The ghost of a girl who ruled Jade's school — until her untimely death last year. It's up to Jade to put the pieces together before her own life is at stake. As Jade investigates the mystery, she discovers that her new friends in town have more than a few deep, dark secrets. But is one of them a murderer?

Mean Girls meets Goosebumps in Kim Harrington’s The Dead and Buried, a chilling page-turner where things go bump in the night after the lights go out.

Think of haunted houses and you probably think scary old manors with cobwebs, creaky floorboards and basements of doom, right?  Not so in The Dead and Buried which sees seventeen year old Jade Kelly move, along with her family, into the house of her dreams. However, lurking just around the corner from dreams are nasty nightmares, and when Jade’s little brother Colby claims that he’s been talking to a girl that nobody else can see, Jade begins to wonder if there’s more to this house of dreams than meets the eye.

And, of course there is.  There’s a reason why Jade’s dad and step-mom got their new house at a knock-down price.  And there’s a reason why all the kids at school have been whispering whenever Jade’s back is turned – hint: it’s not only because she’s the new girl, it’s because she’s living in a death house.  Dun-Dun-Dun! Turns out that Jade’s little brother isn’t just being a freaky little kid after all.  There really is a ghost in the house. Meet Kayla. She wants revenge.

 Kayla Sloane wasn’t a nice girl in life, and I guess that’s why she’s such a nasty ghost, well, that and the fact that she wants to find out who killed her.  Yep – most people think that Kayla’s death was a tragic accident, but in actual fact she was murdered, and with her little brother at risk, it’s up to Jade to solve the mystery before it’s too late.

One of my favourite elements of Harrington’s work is her characters. Clare from the Clarity series remains one of my all time favourite characters, but Jade in The Dead and Buried is right up there too.  I like characters quirks. I like it when characters are not run of the mill – when they act like real people – with real interests and hobbies (here, Jade collects gemstones and I loved how Harrington wove this interest into Jade’s character and her past).  While I like a good romance, I like it too when characters are not wholly consumed by it, so while Jade catches the eye of two guys in particular, she always has time for her family and friends.  Because that’s how real life works, and that for me is why Harrington gets things right with her characters every time.

The Dead and Buried is fast-paced fun with the same blend of mystery and intrigue that made Kim Harrington’s Clarity series such a great read.  Confession: I guessed the culprit pretty early on in this one, but I still had fun dissecting the clues and seeing where they would lead.  I also think that younger readers or those who are perhaps so familiar with murder mysteries will be kept guessing right until the end. The Dead and Buried is certainly a page-turner. I’m a big fan of Harrington’s fast-paced, witty style and I love how she seamlessly blends contemporary style and settings with paranormal elements, making her books fun but spooky too!